1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a Faraday cage, particularly for Nuclear Magnetic Resonance applications, comprising grounding means or means having a predetermined potential.
2. Description of Related Art
The importance of suppressing electromagnetic noise from the environment is well-known in the field of imaging by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance machines, hereafter indicated as MRI.
This noise, when it is not properly suppressed, can generate artifacts or parasitic images which deteriorate the quality of the acquired image.
Such suppression, always indispensable in MRI diagnostics, is particularly critical when using MRI equipment of the so-called dedicated type, i.e. designed to imaging of limited parts of the body or anatomic districts thereof, because, in order to improve installation simplicity and cost reduction, alternatives to costly and complex traditional solutions are needed.
Also, in dedicated machines, the patient body may act someway as an antenna, because it is almost entirely outside the imaging cavity, and so it captures electromagnetic noise and transmits it inside.
While prior art systems have costs which justify the use thereof in high and medium cost machines, in low and medium cost arrangements partial solutions are used, which avoid Faraday cages, because of the cost influence of these cages on the overall cost of the machine.
Although various solutions have been proposed for suppressing such noise, such as grounding the patient body and/or the medical staff by appropriate arrangements, or using self-shielding equipment, the best solution always consists in a Faraday cage electromagnetic shield enclosing the equipment, the patient and possibly the medical staff. Hence, the need arises to provide more attractive Faraday cages even for machines of a lower cost range.